DENVER – Tyler Chatwood struggled with his command at home again, gutting his way through a rough start but putting the Colorado Rockies behind the eight ball a bit, ending in a 6-5 loss to the Seattle Mariners.
It looked like Colorado might stage a late comeback, but it was not to be on this day, though they remain in first place in the National League.
Chatty’s struggles started in the third where his wildness reared its ugly head and he gave up three runs in about as frustrating a manner as possible. It started by surrendering a lead-off single to an AL pitcher, the first hit in the career for Sam Gaviglio. Then he plunked Jean Segura and walked Ben Gamel to load the bases with no outs, bringing Robinson Cano to the plate.
All that considered, it could have been a much uglier frame and it even looked for a moment like Chatwood would get the strikeout he so desperately needed, working an 0-2 count, but he uncorked a wild pitch that allowed the first run to score and set the stage for a pair of groundouts to lead to two more runs.
Colorado punched back though. Charlie Blackmon smashed a solo home run in the bottom of the third, his 13th of the season, extending his MLB lead in RBI to 46. The Rockies made it 3-2 in the fourth on an opposite-field single from Gerardo Parra, scoring Carlos Gonzalez who had walked and moved up on a swinging bunt from Mark Reynolds.
But Chatwood just couldn’t recover, laboring through the fifth, not finding ways to put hitters away. He usually found himself ahead in the count but gave up a pair of singles to Gamel and Cano before walking Nelson Cruz, his second bases-loaded jam in three innings. Again, he worked Kyle Seager into an 0-2 count but Seager fought, fouled off a few pitches, and eventually deposited a double into right-center field to put the Mariners up 5-2.
That was the last pitch Chatwood threw, giving way to Scott Oberg who gave up another 0-2 single to make it 6-2 (run charged to Chatwood) before escaping the frame with no further damage.
The Rockies got another run in the fifth on a solo home run for Trevor Story who has looked far more comfortable at the plate since returning from the disabled list. We talked to Story just before this game and he admitted as much. “I do feel a lot more comfortable. I’ve put a couple of games together, I’m feeling confident, like it will carry forward.”
It carried into this one. Since returning, he is getting on base at over a .370 clip, has a pair of home runs, and three RBI in five games. He now has eight long flies on the season.
Colorado pulled to within one run in the following frame. A pair of singles from DJ LeMahieu and Nolan Arenado led to a fielder’s choice from Reynolds and a double from Parra. That was Parra’s fifth RBI in the last two games. It also made the score 6-5 going into the seventh.
Of note, Oberg did his job and was replaced by Jordan Lyles who quietly pitched two scoreless innings in the sixth and seventh, making it four in a row for the much-maligned reliever.
Adam Ottavino got into some trouble in the top of the eighth, giving up a single to Mike Zunino and walking Jarrod Dyson before getting a flyout before intentionally walking Jean Segura and giving way to Jake McGee who inherited a bases-loaded (sound familiar?) one-out jam. McGee bore down and struck out Guillermo Heredia and got Cano to fly out to center to strand them all and keep the one-run deficit intact.
But after scoring in the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth, the Rockies offense went quiet and they were never able to get the final run to tie it up.
Colorado fell to 33-20 on the season and are now just a half-game up on the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the NL West.
